Security of Diplomatic Enclave, Red Zone: Army to be deployed ahead of PTI’s possible long march

ISLAMABAD: The government Tuesday decided to hand over the security of government buildings in the Red Zone and the security of the Diplomatic Enclave to the army before the arrival of the possible long march of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

The decision to hand over the security of the Red Zone to the army was taken during a meeting presided by Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, said a senior official, adding that the army would deploy in the capital city under Article 245 of the Constitution.

Secretary Ministry of Interior Yousaf Naseem Khokhar, Commandant Frontier Constabulary (FC) Salahuddin Khan Mehsud, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Islamabad, Dr Akbar Nasir Khan, and Commandant Rangers attended the meeting, he said, adding that during the meeting the law enforcement agencies finalised their strategy for dealing with the PTI long march.

He also said that the meeting decided that the possible long march of the PTI would not be allowed to enter the capital at any cost.

During the long march, personnel of capital police, FC, Sindh police, and the Rangers would be deployed in the city and decided to arrange 30,000 personnel of Rangers, he said.

The official said that it was also decided that strict action would be taken against the individuals and organisations that were found involved in providing financial and logistical support to the marchers.

He said that there would be a ban on carrying weapons during the PTI’s long march. The meeting also decided that action would be taken against those federal government officials who were found involved in providing help to the PTI march, he said.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022